Face of Battle

**Montmorency** · 09-15-2011, 01:26

Keegan states that the distinction between strategy and tactics is "elusive and artificial." Please explain.

**Arjos** · 09-15-2011, 01:44

One could see strategy as the set of actions and planning to achieve a grand goal; and tacticts as the set of procedures to gain the upper hand in a confrontation...
While Keegan points out how the distinction between the two is something "feeble" and "constructed"...

Imo it's all down to a personal view...

**Montmorency** · 09-15-2011, 02:05

That's not very satisfying.

Correction: Face of Battle. Oh dear.

**Arjos** · 09-15-2011, 02:10

I don't know how to make it clearer :S

It's like this: tacticts are used to win a battle, while strategy to win the war; Keegan says that it's all the same...

This is very simplistic though...

**Montmorency** · 09-15-2011, 03:04

Imo it's all down to a personal view...

That's what I was referring to.

Yes, I see that you yourself provided a reasonable distinction. So why doesn't Keegan see one?

**Arjos** · 09-15-2011, 03:18

Ohhhhhh :P

That in your quote was how I see it :D (there's a distiction or not depending on one's opinion)

To me they are two different things: for example one can have in mind a set goal, but rely on opportunism or is powerless to mold reality to his favour, even if he can achieve victory on the battlefield...
First to my mind is Spartacus...

I read "A History of Warfare" by Keegan, didn't read "Face of Battle" yet (you gave me another one to add to the list ^^), so I can't say...
Doesn't he go further with his idea in the book?

**Montmorency** · 09-15-2011, 03:49

As far as I remember, he just mentions it offhand in the first chapter.

Further: Strategy - Army Group A and Army Group B will coordinate to encircle enemy capital
Tactics - Deploy armor in echelon and with overlapping lines of sight

**Arjos** · 09-15-2011, 03:59

Well uhm... that's clearly seeing them as two concepts :P
Unless he consider the whole picture as military operations at macro or micro levels...

I hope someone with better knowledge than mine can enlight this...

**PanzerJaeger** · 09-15-2011, 04:51

I haven't read the book, but the distinction has always revolved around planning and execution in my mind.

**econ21** · 09-15-2011, 06:57

Originally Posted by PanzerJaeger

I haven't read the book, ...

Off topic, but you should try it. I found it the most interesting analytical book I have read about war.

**Beirut** · 09-18-2011, 18:20

Ther Face of Battle is an excellent book.

The best explanation of strategy vs. tactics I ever read was in a Guns & Ammo column by Col. Jeff Cooper:

"Strategy is getting the girl to go out with you, picking her up on time, taking her to dinner, cataloguing her charms, and then finding a nice dark, quiet place to park afterwards - from that point on it's all tactics."